Business Startup Tips

So you’ve decided to start a business. You’ve done your homework and see a great opportunity in a niche market that no one else seems to be targeting.

You have lots of decisions to make and never enough information, but the important thing is to keep moving forward. The small decisions (ones that aren’t going to cost you a lot of money) don’t have to be agonized over; you can always change your mind later.

Starting a business is expensive; it takes time to get the cash flow happening. Entrepreneurs are optimists by nature so usually think that the money will start rolling in quicker and in greater amounts than reality dictates.

Hire professionals to do things you don’t know how to do. It will save you money in the long run. Lease agreements and web sites can cost more than they need to if you don’t know what’s important.

Make sure the professionals you decide to work with have the commitment and skills to deliver what you want, when you want it. Do they really have the skill to work with you to translate your vision into reality?

Have you thought about how you are going to attract customers to your business?

Bediligent about talking to current and former customers of the professionals you need to hire. Balance price and performance, often the most economical don’t offer good value.

If you are going to have a partner, now is the time to have a partnership agreement drawn up. During start-up when everything is exciting and your rose coloured glasses have no scratches on the lenses to cloud your view, is the perfect time to set the ground rules. Go to a lawyer who has experience in partnership agreements, he or she will suggest clauses to include. It’s money well spent and may save a friendship, if nothing else.

Start a diary and write in it daily. It is just for you, so you can say anything you want in it; no one else is going to see it. You can articulate your greatest challenges and frustrations, without being found out. It gives you an opportunity to go back later and review the things you thought were of utmost importance and think about how little impact they have had on the success of your business.

Successful business is all about Visibility, Credibility and Profitability.

Often the people who come to us have already hired someone to do their marketing, media buying, logo design or web site. A number of them have spent a lot of money working with companies that have templates set up for web design and look like a simple solution to something they don’t understand. One client spent 3 times what we would have charged for his web site and he doesn’t have control over his extensive database so he can’t move.

When Jane first came to us, it was for a new logo design. She had barely launched her business, but felt the design she had was not compatible with her goals. Through the discussion process for her new design, she experienced a paradigm shift and realized her thinking was limiting her business. She has a new business name that expands the possibilities for her business but does not detract from the clear purpose of her business.